I. ˈswərv, ˈswə̄v, ˈswəiv verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle English swerven, from Old English sweorfan to file away, polish, wipe, rub, scour; akin to Old Frisian swerva to creep, Old Saxon swerƀan to wipe off, Old High German swerban to wipe off, Old Norse sverfa to file, svarfa to sweep, swerve, Gothic af swairban to wipe off, Welsh chwerfu to whirl, turn around, Greek syrein to drag, Russian sverbet' to itch; basic meaning: to turn
intransitive verb
1. : to move from a straight line or course : turn aside : become deflected : deviate
swerving to avoid two errand boys on bicycles — Robert Graves
the bull swerved to meet this new opponent — Francis Birtles
the highway swerves south — American Guide Series: Florida
2. : to become deflected from a fixed or right course of action, conduct, or belief : shift one's position or allegiance : waver
had never swerved from what she conceived to be her duty — A.J.Kennedy
3. archaic : to give way : yield , totter
transitive verb
: to turn aside : cause to turn from a straight course : cause to deviate
swerve the car
swerve a ball
do not let your apprehension of what the judges may say swerve you from saying what you think — C.P.Curtis
Synonyms:
swerve , veer , deviate , depart , digress , and diverge can mean, in common, to turn aside from a straight line or a defined course. swerve may suggest a physical, mental, or moral turning from a given course, usually by an abrupt shift of direction
the highway now skirts the lake shore … and again swerves inland — American Guide Series: Vermont
the driver of the motorcar swerved the other way but could not avoid the cab — Eric Linklater
swerved and veered like a gull — John Dos Passos
not to swerve from the path of duty or righteousness
veer , applying commonly to the change in the course of a wind or ship and often suggesting frequent turning or a series of turnings in the same direction, implies a change or a series of changes of direction or course under an external influence comparable to the wind
the wind suddenly veered and drove the waters of the Gulf in mountainous waves upon them — American Guide Series: Louisiana
his thought, veering and tacking as the winds blew — V.L.Parrington
drift with every current of opinion and veer like a weathercock with every breeze of fashion — S.J.Brown
literary men veer between the extremes of a contempt for the masses and a glorification of the people — H.J.Muller
deviate implies a turning aside from a customary, allotted, or prescribed course, suggesting a swerving from what is the norm, the law, the standard, or the proper procedure or course
if he diminishes his speed by a fraction of a second or deviates a hair's breadth from the prescribed and never-changing movements of his hands — C.H.Grandgent
anyone who deviates from that faith — V.M.Hancher
has never deviated from the belief that the basis of a good cartoon is caricature — Current Biography
depart usually signifies little more than leaving a given path, usually figurative
one point in which the definition of virtue and vice given above departs from tradition and from common practice — Bertrand Russell
the design of the center departs somewhat from that of the newer buildings — American Guide Series: Minnesota
forced by circumstances to depart from the principles of his own logic — W.P.Webb
digress implies a departure from the subject of one's discourse whether intentional or from general lack of a sense of coherence
digress a moment from a main point of discussion to consider a pressing tangential problem
an irritating habit of disgressing and never getting back to the main point of a story
diverge , often used in the sense of depart , usu., however, suggests a separation of one, usually a main, path into two or more leading in different directions
the absolute prohibition of all ideas that diverge in the slightest from the accepted platitudes — H.L.Mencken
diverged from the path, and got before them on the left flank — George Meredith
proceeded along the road together till they reached the town, and their paths diverged — Thomas Hardy
a year later the careers of the brothers, so far linked together, diverged — Current Biography
II. noun
( -s )
1. : the act, process, or an instance of swerving
with a dexterous swerve he rounded the yawl about — Frederick Way
2. : side-to-side curve of a bowled cricket ball before it pitches ; especially : such curve induced by finger spin